Gritting

Frozen car windows, ice scrapers, woolly hats, seeing your breath like a cloud and chilly fingers. The winter has now arrived and as usual it is a cold one. During the winter months, the roads will be laid with grit to help keep you moving from A to B every day.

One of the requests we receive over the winter months is for gritting and/or grit bins. How we use gritting in our areas can differ. Here’s a handy guide to explain more.

Grit bins

Some of our neighbourhoods may have an existing grit bin. During the winter months we will refill this bin for you.

You will then be responsible for using this grit to distribute it on and around your property.

You and a few neighbours may want to join together to help grit your road so everyone can get out safely.

No grit bin

If you do not have a grit bin in your neighbourhood, your local council will be responsible for gritting. To speak to your local council about this, click here.

If you feel a grit bin is needed, your housing manager will visit your neighbourhood on their next visit to inspect and decide whether one is required in the future. To make your housing manager aware, contact us.

DIY

You can buy your own grit at your local hardware store. You could join together with your neighbours to buy some bags and distribute between yourselves.

Look out for your elderly and disabled neighbours during the cold weather. Check in on them regularly to see if they need anything.

Offer to clear your neighbour’s path. If you all pitch in together, you can clear the paths in your road more quickly.

Do you need to melt some snow? Don’t use water. This will only re-freeze and can cause black ice. You can use salt to help clear an area. Simply use ordinary table or dishwasher salt.

You can also use sand to help with icy paths. This won’t stop a path from icing over but will still help to give you some grip.